United Nations Daily Highlights, 05-10-20

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From: The United Nations Home Page at <http://www.un.org> - email: unnews@un.org

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SPOKESMAN'S NOON BRIEFING

BY STEPHANE

DUJARRIC

SPOKESMAN FOR THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

UN HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

Thursday, October 20, 2005

ANNAN RECEIVES REPORT ON INVESTIGATION

INTO KILLING OF LEBANESE EX-PRIME MINISTER

Secretary-General Kofi Annan today received from Detlev Mehlis, head of the UN International Independent Investigation Commission, his report into the deaths of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and a number of other people on 14 February 2005.

Mehlis will brief the Security Council on the report on Tuesday, 25 October 2005.

Asked about Mehliss travel plans, the Spokesman said that Mehlis was expected to be in New York though his briefing to the Security Council next Tuesday.

The Spokesman declined to comment on any details about the report, as it has not yet gone to the Security Council. He noted that, under the current plans, Council members should receive the report on Friday morning. It would become a public document after that, he said.

Asked about the possible extension of members of the Mehlis team, the Spokesman said that the Secretary-General, based on his reading of the report, would then decide on a possible extension of the teams mandate.

The Spokesman, in response to a question, said it was his understanding that the report would be transmitted in its present form to the Security Council.

Asked why the Secretary-General needed to see it before the Council does and hold on to it for a full day, the Spokesman said that it was important for the Secretary-General to familiarize himself with the report, particularly as he studies the request for an extension of the mandate.

ANNAN CALLS FOR MAJOR INCREASE IN SUPPORT TO QUAKE-STRICKEN PAKISTAN

The Secretary-General has

urged an immediate and exceptional escalation of the global relief effort to support the work of the Government of Pakistan in dealing with the damage caused by the 8 October earthquake.

An estimated three million men, women and children are homeless, many with no blankets or tents, which means a second, massive wave of death will happen if we do not step up our efforts now, he said. Among other things, he said, the United Nations urgently needs 450,000 winterized tents and temporary shelters.

The Secretary-General said that next week, on 26 October, he will attend the emergency donors conference in Geneva convened by the United Nations. We expect results, he said. Our response will be no less than a measure of our humanity.

The Secretary-General will be joined at next weeks donors conference in Geneva by UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Jan Egeland, as well as representatives of the Pakistani Government, donor countries and other international organizations, such as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the European Union, the Council of Europe, the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank.

In Geneva today, Egeland

said at a press conference that the South Asia earthquake was an emergency like no other and that the UN had never faced this kind of logistical nightmare before. He had thought the tsunami was bad, but the present situation in South Asia was worse.

Although he was grateful to countries that had contributed helicopters, tents and money, he still said that the world was not responding as it should be. Now was not the time for donor fatigue, he added.

ANNAN HAS FULL CONFIDENCE IN HIS MIDDLE EAST ENVOY

The Secretary-General was

surprised by the statement issued yesterday by Amre Moussa, Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, criticizing the Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Alvaro de Soto, for his briefing to the Security Council on 23 September 2005. There was nothing in that briefing that could be construed as supporting the construction by Israel of the barrier on occupied Palestinian land.

The position taken by de Soto was entirely consistent with decisions taken in the General Assembly and the Security Council on this issue.

The Secretary-General has full confidence in his Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process and expects all interested parties to work with him in our common search for a solution in the Middle East.

GAZA DISENGAGEMENT HAS YET TO REVIVE MIDDLE EAST PEACE PROCESS

Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Ibrahim Gambari

told the Security Council today that we have witnessed both hopes and perils in the month since the Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.

Disengagement, he said, has yet to revive the peace process, although it offers a basis and an opportunity to do exactly that, through completion of the agenda as laid out by the Quartet.

Speaking to the Councils open meeting on the

Middle East, Gambari reviewed recent developments, including the significant deterioration in the security situation during the last week of September and the first week of October. The upsurge of violence, he noted, has dulled the sense of optimism.

Gambari said that the parties must work constructively over the coming month to clear up the outstanding access and movement issues relating to disengagement, acting in parallel to implement obligations set out in the Road Map. He added that Israel needs to halt all settlement activity, while the Palestinian Authority must persist with comprehensive reform and strengthening of its security services.

The Security Council held consultations on the Middle East.

Also in its closed consultations, France submitted a revised draft resolution on Cote dIvoire.

ANNAN WARNS ABOUT RENEWED VIOLENCE IN DARFUR, SUDAN

The resurgence of violence in Darfur,

Sudan, is a source of serious concern and may threaten the success of peace talks in Abuja, Nigeria, the Secretary-General warns in the latest monthly

report to the Security Council on Darfur.

He reports on the Sudanese Governments continued unwillingness or inability to restrain the armed tribal militia. He notes the growing divide within the rebel Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) and the need for greater international assistance to the African Union force being deployed in Darfur.

The recent brutal wave of violence makes real and lasting improvements to the humanitarian situation impossible. The Secretary-General also notes the increasing evidence of gross violations of human rights and humanitarian law.

The international community must put decisive and concerted pressure on the parties, the Secretary-General says, adding, Every effort must be made to halt the violence on the ground, and above all, violence that targets civilians.

This is a crucial moment for Darfur, and no time should be lost, he says.

SOMALIA: POLITICAL TENSIONS LEADING TO MILITARY PREPARATIONS

The Secretary-General, in a

report to the Security Council on Somalia, says that some progress has been made in the peace process, particularly with the formation and return of the transitional federal institutions back to the country.

But, he says, much remains to be done in overcoming the current political impasse.

The Secretary-General is deeply concerned that the political tensions between leaders have given rise to military preparations. He also flags persistent reports of increased violations of the arms embargo.

The threat of violence must be averted, and he appeals to the Somali leaders to enter into a comprehensive ceasefire agreement.

ANNAN REGRETS LACK OF PROGRESS IN WESTERN SAHARA

In his

report on the

Western Sahara, the Secretary-General regrets that the positions of the parties remained far apart and that a lack of progress was complicated by an overall tense political climate in the region.

He said that the United Nations remains willing to help but it is up to the parties to take the necessary decisions to make that help possible.

The Secretary-General said that the High Commissioner for Human Rights would look into allegations of violations of human rights in the area.

And he asks the Council to extend the mandate of the UN Mission there for six months, until the end of April next year.

U.N. HOUSING AGENCY GETS NEW DEPUTY CHIEF

The Secretary-General today announced the appointment of Inga Björk-Klevby of Sweden as Deputy Executive Director of the UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat).

Björk-Klevby, an economist by training and currently Ambassador of Sweden to Cote dIvoire, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, has an outstanding career in diplomacy, international finance and development cooperation.

As Deputy Executive director of UN-Habitat, her main task will be to revitalise and oversee the management of the Habitat and Human Settlements Foundation so as to contribute effectively to the water and sanitation and slum upgrading targets of the Millennium Declaration.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

HAITI: MORE MONEY NEEDED IF ELECTIONS TO BE SUCCESS: Juan Valdes, the Secretary-Generals representative in

Haiti is in Brussels today for a European Union-organized donors conference for Haiti. After his briefing of the Security Council on Tuesday, Valdes said that he had hoped the donors conference would create an emergency fund for Haiti. He said that international contributions for Haiti were lagging behind pledges, and more money was needed to conduct successful elections there.

SANCTIONS COMMITTEE CHAIR CONTINUES MEETINGS IN COTE DIVOIRE: The chairman of the UN Sanctions Committee for

Cote dIvoire, Ambassador Adamantios Vassilakis, is in Abidjan today, in meetings with signatories of the 2003 peace agreement and with monitors of that accord. Yesterday he called on ministers of the government of national reconciliation, leaders of human rights groups and the local press. He has more meetings scheduled for Friday and will return to New York on Saturday.

IMMEDIATE NEEDS IDENTIFIED FOR FLOOD VICTIMS IN INDONESIA: The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

reports that floods have hit Indonesia, in both Aceh and eastern Java. The United Nations participated in an assessment mission of the regions today. According to the UNs partners, immediate needs include food, water, sanitation, and household items such as family and hygiene kits and clothing.

NEW PROPOSED ETHICS POST APPROPRIATE: Asked whether the proposed new ethics post, which is at the Assistant Secretary-General level, was at a high enough level, the Spokesman said that it is not just the level of the appointment that matters but the authority that will be granted. He said the level the post has been given was a valid one.

NEW STAMPS FOR SALE TODAY: Today, the

UN Postal Administration, in cooperation with the World Food Programme, is issuing a set of six commemorative stamps on the theme Food for Life. First day hand-cancellations are available at special counters set up throughout headquarters, as well as in Geneva and Vienna.